Thoughts on Long-Term Charging Plans for Overlanding and Rural Travel?

[Cranky Canuck]

If you want a vehicle to run off solar just buy an Aptera https://aptera.us/

A big truck like a Scout is too inefficient to make a modestly-sized solar array worth it. You'd need a big one, which is fine but it's not something you'll carry around with you.

 

[chucchinchilla]

If you want a vehicle to run off solar just buy an Aptera https://aptera.us/

A big truck like a Scout is too inefficient to make a modestly-sized solar array worth it. You'd need a big one, which is fine but it's not something you'll carry around with you.

I think first we have to ask the question, how far off grid are we going anyway? If a Scout w/Harvester has 500mi range and you can carry additional cans of gas with you for even more range...how much do you really need beyond that?

 

[J Alynn]

I think first we have to ask the question, how far off grid are we going anyway? If a Scout w/Harvester has 500mi range and you can carry additional cans of gas with you for even more range...how much do you really need beyond that?

Great point

 

[Chaz26]

I think first we have to ask the question, how far off grid are we going anyway? If a Scout w/Harvester has 500mi range and you can carry additional cans of gas with you for even more range...how much do you really need beyond that?

Agreed, at that point if you can't do it in a Scout with Harvester then you'll probably not be able to do it with any other regular gas car either. The other question along with how far off grid are you going is how long are you going for? If it's only a weekend or long weekend then it shouldn't be an issue, if you're planning on a couple of weeks or more then more planning might be needed, but still Harvester with a spare gas can should be good. If it's only for a few days and less than 100 miles from the nearest charger then even the BEV would likely be fine. It might even be okay for a week depending on exactly what you'll be running off the car and how far you're going.

 

[Chavannigans]

If you want a ready made solution, there is someone already selling something like what you describe. I don't know anything about it other than what I have seen online, so I can't vouch for them, but I thought I would pass it along.

EV Solar Charger

Our solar products make off-grid living easy. Check out the latest solar ovens, solar coolers, solar chargers, and solar lighting for any adventure.

gosun.co

I have a reservation for a Dart Solar unit but wanted to wait and see how reviews and testing goes.

DartSolar

www.dartsolar.com

DIY would be Plan B. But I do like that the Go Sun unit plugs directly into the car without needing a separate solar generator. That’s a pretty big deal.

 

[Chavannigans]

Agreed, at that point if you can't do it in a Scout with Harvester then you'll probably not be able to do it with any other regular gas car either. The other question along with how far off grid are you going is how long are you going for? If it's only a weekend or long weekend then it shouldn't be an issue, if you're planning on a couple of weeks or more then more planning might be needed, but still Harvester with a spare gas can should be good. If it's only for a few days and less than 100 miles from the nearest charger then even the BEV would likely be fine. It might even be okay for a week depending on exactly what you'll be running off the car and how far you're going.

I have looked at 7.3 F250 Tremors and 3.0 Duramax Trail Boss since they offer some offroad capability and a bench seat option.

The first mods would be the Transferflow 58 gallon tank replacement on the Tremor (around 870 miles of range) or the Titan 43 gallon tank replacement on the Trail Boss (1,250 mile range).

The LX700h Overtrail I also considered has a big battery and a small gas tank. Range is very poor on those and you can’t add a larger tank due to space constraints.

Another consideration is some destinations are one way trips. 500 mile range means you can only drive 250 miles, then turn around and head back.

Even less when you are offroad, where EVs tend to go through battery rather quickly.

I’ve clenched my cheeks a few times heading back from places like Big Bend State Park (camp sites are 3-4 hours drive from the main entrance) and heading back from the end of Padre Island National Seashore. We were on Empty and running on fumes on our way out before pulling into the nearest fuel stations.

One of the most compelling features of the Scout was the range they offered. The versatility of using them to power your campsite and home was just a bonus.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

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Even less when you are offroad, where EVs tend to go through battery rather quickly.

I keep hearing this and haven't experienced it. In my Lifhtning, I get between 3 and 4 miles/kWh off-road or on low speed roads and up to 2.5 miles/kWh on the freeway.

What's the basis for this claim?

 

[chucchinchilla]

I keep hearing this and haven't experienced it. In my Lifhtning, I get between 3 and 4 miles/kWh off-road or on low speed roads and up to 2.5 miles/kWh on the freeway.

What's the basis for this claim?

Whether true or not, the solution is the same. Get Harvester which then opens you up to extending the range of your car by 2 means...jerry cans and solar. How you add those capabilities are up to you, but with a couple of jerry cans and a handful of those 250w panels discussed on the last page you could live like a nomad out there for a loong time.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

Whether true or not, the solution is the same. Get Harvester which then opens you up to extending the range of your car by 2 means...jerry cans and solar. How you add those capabilities are up to you, but with a couple of jerry cans and a handful of those 250w panels discussed on the last page you could live like a nomad out there for a loong time.

I have zero interest in a gas vehicle for our overland adventures (or for any purposes--I am sadly stuck with a diesel tractor until I can get it replaced with an electric). I have spent way too many afternoons siphoning gas from a jerry can into a truck to do that again.

I am almost ready to test an indefinite off-grid overlanding system. My basic system gets me to my favorite boondock camp sites that are 200+ miles from a DCFC for as many days as I like, as long as I stay for a couple of days. It still requires a bit of a charge recovery period. The new system should recover more quickly and will enable longer driving distances. But time is at a premium right now, so I don't know when I can get away for a few weeks or a month.

 

[Chavannigans]

I keep hearing this and haven't experienced it. In my Lifhtning, I get between 3 and 4 miles/kWh off-road or on low speed roads and up to 2.5 miles/kWh on the freeway.

What's the basis for this claim?

I guess it depends on what you would consider technical terrain, weather conditions, and how much “Spirited Driving” is going on.

Sandy conditions, rocky Conditions, snowy conditions, and muddy conditions tend to require more energy by their nature. Some more than others.

More stop and go on a technical trail uses more energy than maintaining a constant speed.

More elevation changes use more energy and regenerative brakes aren’t as efficient at low crawling speeds.

ICE vehicles are no different and experience reduced range as well, so it’s not an “EV Hater” thing.

It’s simply taking more effort with more wheel spin to get through some obstacles and sections. Some Rivian owners have reported noticeable drops in mi/kWh in really sandy conditions.

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/tested-the-new-soft-sand-mode-today-with-r1t.5804/

 

[cyure]

I have a question for all you overlanders, from a non-overlander. How often are you going over landing? And when you do go how long are your trips on average? Just curious.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

I guess it depends on what you would consider technical terrain, weather conditions, and how much “Spirited Driving” is going on.

Sandy conditions, rocky Conditions, snowy conditions, and muddy conditions tend to require more energy by their nature. Some more than others.

More stop and go on a technical trail uses more energy than maintaining a constant speed.

More elevation changes use more energy and regenerative brakes aren’t as efficient at low crawling speeds.

ICE vehicles are no different and experience reduced range as well, so it’s not an “EV Hater” thing.

It’s simply taking more effort with more wheel spin to get through some obstacles and sections. Some Rivian owners have reported noticeable drops in mi/kWh in really sandy conditions. View attachment 7858

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/tested-the-new-soft-sand-mode-today-with-r1t.5804/

I know the idea. In an ICE, much of the inefficiency is due to idling and very low speeds. I haven't experienced a reduction in efficiency with my Lightning. I've only done maybe a thousand miles off-road in the Lightning, though. And only on very mildly technical terrain.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

I have a question for all you overlanders, from a non-overlander. How often are you going over landing? And when you do go how long are your trips on average? Just curious.

As often as possible. But for me it's usually no more than twice a year these days. We used to go a lot more when I was a graduate student. Average trip was probably a week or two. Long trips are more likely in the future. Most of the time now, we just camp over a long weekend.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

I guess it depends on what you would consider technical terrain, weather conditions, and how much “Spirited Driving” is going on.

Sandy conditions, rocky Conditions, snowy conditions, and muddy conditions tend to require more energy by their nature. Some more than others.

I've been in some mud, but no sand yet.

More stop and go on a technical trail uses more energy than maintaining a constant speed.

More elevation changes use more energy and regenerative brakes aren’t as efficient at low crawling speeds.

Definitely have seen that elevation changes have an impact. 30-ish mph seems to be a sweet spot of minimal air resistance and decent momentum, but anything super low speeds I could see a decrease in efficiency.

ICE vehicles are no different and experience reduced range as well, so it’s not an “EV Hater” thing.

I didn't think it was. Just my experience is different. I'm wondering what kind of fun I'm missing out on.

It’s simply taking more effort with more wheel spin to get through some obstacles and sections. Some Rivian owners have reported noticeable drops in mi/kWh in really sandy conditions.

 

[Chavannigans]

I have a question for all you overlanders, from a non-overlander. How often are you going over landing? And when you do go how long are your trips on average? Just curious.

I work full time but one of the best offroad parks is only an hour away so I used to go 2-3 weekends a month when I had a vehicle set up for off-roading.

There is RV parking and primitive camping. Some little air conditioned cabins too. Lots of fun trails for dirt bikes and 4x4s.

My wife is a teacher so we travel more in the summer and on holiday breaks.

The longest we were completely off grid was a week in Big Bend State Park during winter. It was beautiful. We folded down the second row in the Lexus and it was completely stuffed with coolers and camping gear. We slept in a massive roof top tent that had a large annex.

Usually if we travel somewhere more than a few hours away, we stay gone for 7-10 days at a minimum. I’d like to have the capability to do that off grid in other state parks, national parks, and BLM land since they are all free access for us now.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

I have a question for all you overlanders, from a non-overlander. How often are you going over landing? And when you do go how long are your trips on average? Just curious.

I also have a business plan sitting on the shelf that involves overlanding far from the grid with a group for up to 15 days. Part of that plan includes a truck and trailer as a chuck wagon. Such trips would be all-electric.

 

[Mousehunter]

I guess it would depend on how overlanding is defined. Before I was married, I kayaked a bunch. For 6 months of the year I was on the/a river about every other weekend - mostly camping out of my truck. My truck was well set up for it, so I camped out of it for hunting as well. But we called it car camping then.

I have tried to set up other vehicles since then, but nothing has worked as well as that truck did. Never built out the next truck-hated it and got rid of it quickly. Truck after that had a 5.5' bed-and I could not figure a decent way to build it out as well. Build a tiny slide in camper for my new truck - but will just call that version 1.0. It worked ok for 4-5k miles of trips - but I knew after an hour of using it it really was a work in process. I had solar panels on the roof, but had not invested in decent batteries yet - but it was enough to keep a fridge/freezer running for a week. Have built up a Jeep to mimic my old truck - but even though it is newer than that truck was, it is even less dependable (that was the fate of that old truck. It left me on the side of the road about every 10k miles - finally could not tolerate it anymore after it stranded me 3 trips in a row.

Perfect world, I would build something that gives me overnight AC. While I could put 15kwh of battery in my current truck - that would only give me a night or 2 (and adding enough solar to recharge it in 5hrs of peak sunlight is really not practical-it would need to be wider than the bed, and extend from the back of the camper to over the cab) . Scout would do it from the factory.